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Not every NCAA tournament has a Cinderella and if you ask the Cornell Big Red, this year’s tournament doesn’t. Don’t get me wrong, they realize they are a #12 seed (lowest remaining seed in the field) and had to beat 2 good teams (Temple and Purdue) just to advance to this point. Cornell realizes how special this is, but make no mistake about it; Cornell is here to win.
I was first exposed to this year’s Cornell team when they nearly upset #1 and then undefeated Kansas at Allen Field House. I remember the hearing after the game that Kansas All-American guard told Cornell forward Ryan Wittman that he was a great player during the game right out on the court. Also, Kansas coach Bill Self asked Cornell coach Steve Donahue during their post game hand shake if Donahue thought his team played well. Donahue responded with a simple “Yes”. Self replied with ”Good, because I thought we played well, too”. That’s when I figured this Cornell team might be for real.
Here are some stats for you:
Notice both teams take pretty good care of the ball and shoot a good percentage. Cornell has an advantage in eFG (effective field goal percentage) but they will be tested against this long and athletic Kentucky team. Kentucky gets to the free throw line more often which is a result of the John Calipari dribble drive offensive. Take away the team names in this graphic and it looks to be a pretty competitive game. Insert Cornell and Kentucky back into the graphic and the general public will say Cornell doesn’t stand a chance.
Cornell is a senior led experienced basketball team. Kentucky is led by 3 talented freshmen (Wall, Cousins and Bledsoe). Kentucky coach John Calipari has been quoted saying “In March, I’ll take talent over experience”. That theory will be put to the test Thursday night.
